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Armed and Dangerous
Armed and Dangerous is an encounter in The Battle for Krezzor. Enemies * Four-Armed Slaughterer (1235 Gold, 152 XP, 95 Energy, 7 HP) * Four-Armed Baron (1235 Gold, 152 XP, 95 Energy, 7 HP) Transcript Introduction Last night... You were wondering where Brachus' minions got hold of all these tents. Now, as you stand in the command tent -- a broad, lofty marquee -- you understand. Colored flames dance above your heads, chasing one another's tails like frolicking serpents. Their incandescence shines down on the table, where illusionary magic forms a simulacrum of the purple plains and emerald streams which will soon be your battlefield, along with the shimmering castle that's your ultimate goal. Their arcane glow washes over the assembled council of war, illuminating features lovely and hideous, smirking and grim, human and demon. And they throw waves of brightness over the tent's walls -- disclosing the hides of dozens of fiendish creatures, flayed from bodies and stitched together in a macabre tapestry. Here and there a lifeless face gazes from sewn-up eyes. And your first thought? That the infernal realm's seamstresses must be skilled indeed to have put it together so quickly, with such fine needlework. Maybe that's a sign you've spent too long in this place... As that notion crosses your mind, tiny demons pop into existence on the illusionary tableau -- forming the legions which stand between you and the road out of hell. *** "Gods..." one of your companions exclaims. "Demons," a helpful fiend corrects. And whilst the latter is the case, you find yourself uttering a similar sentiment to the former. These creatures seemed fearsome and ferocious enough when rendered in miniature on the command tent's sand table. But it appears that the scaled illusion did little justice to the reality. They're monsters, raging behemoths encased in heavy thews, with four arms that are each thicker than your legs. And they're putting those limbs to savage use. A grey-skinned brute holds one of Brachus' minions in the air, gripping the victim's arms with the lower pair of his own -- while his upper pair carves and slashes with the blades attached to their forearms. Your ally falls to the purple grass chunk by bloody chunk. Elsewhere a scarlet demon is swinging his four fists in all directions, battering an entire pack of foes, smashing skulls and ribcages. Druka was right. There's no way your riders could charge through these juggernauts. You and Brachus have to clear their path... Conclusion An abominable shriek draws your gaze for an instant -- just long enough to see a demon staggering around, his four sundered upper arms spraying fountains of yellow blood on either side. Brachus stands behind him, his purple face grim, a gore-splattered sword in his hand. And this is the world he wanted to return to... Your own adversary, similarly distracted by the brutal spectacle, turns back to you and roars. From the murderous expression on his wide, flat face, he intends to avenge his comrade by slaughtering the human rather than risking a similar fate against the prince. You don't blame him. He charges, bladed arms swinging -- forming a web of flashing steel in front of his chest. If you tried to attack through that metal maelstrom... The image of roast meat, carved into bloody hunks, fills your thoughts. So instead you throw yourself into a diagonal roll, slipping beside the fiend as he blunders past you. By the time he stops, you're in a crouch -- and the point of your sword is through the back of his knee. He crashes down face first, without uttering a single cry. It's only when you move in for the kill that you realize why. One of the clumsy fool's arm blades is stuck in his throat. Category:The Battle for Krezzor